The situation with modern American rocketry is difficult to compare with anything: perhaps the United States has never had so many potentially revolutionary innovations. First of all, we are talking about SpaceX with its partially-reusable heavy-class Falcon 9 rocket. Due to the launch price of $ 60 million (less than that of Proton-M, which was famous for its relative cheapness), this launch vehicle became the most demanded of all in 2019 in the rocket launch market. In 2020, SpaceX can repeat the success, and then threatens to commission its "monster" in the person of the Big Falcon Rocket.
However, behind the beautiful footage of the first stage landing and the spectacular BFR presentations, we can overlook a real revolution. And it is not connected with SpaceX at all. And not at all with heavy or super-heavy carriers. The fact is that the process of miniaturization of space vehicles is actively going on in the world: large and powerful launch vehicles often seem redundant for performing current tasks.
This is understood by the American company Rocket Lab, which has developed the Electron light rocket, which some sources call ultralight. The main trump card of the carrier is the price. According to previously announced data, the cost of launching a rocket is approximately $ 5 to $ 6.6 million. Electron can put up to 250 kilograms of cargo into a low reference orbit, which is a lot for this class of rockets. Now no one in the world has a direct analogue. But it will appear soon.
The most competitive rocket (at least in its segment) can be a carrier from a startup Astra Space, unknown to anyone a few years ago. The founders of the company are Adam London and Chris Kemp. The latter is a former NASA employee, that is, a person with great experience and, as practice shows, great ambitions.
What is it about the creation of Astra Space that the attention of a good half of the hemisphere is riveted to it? The fact is that with a mass of about 150-200 kilograms of load placed in a low reference orbit, the launch price should be 2.5 million dollars. Many times less than that of Electron, not to mention other carriers. They are counting on companies such as Spire Global or Planet, which want to put a huge number of miniature spacecraft into orbit.
The Astra, which consists of about 150 people, already has several trials under its belt. On February 28, employees were supposed to perform the first space launch of the Rocket 3.0 rocket, an eleven-meter two-stage rocket that uses kerosene and liquid oxygen as fuel. But something went wrong: they could not launch it.
Didn't meet the deadlines
One important point needs to be clarified here. This launch was unusual, and the point is not only that for Astra Space it was supposed to be the first real test of strength. The launch was an essential part of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Launch Challenge competition.
Under the terms, the first company to be able to carry out two launches in a row from different sites and with different payloads in a period of several weeks wins $ 12 million. Finally, the most interesting thing: Astra Space had no competitors at the time of the alleged launch. Previously, there were two, but Virgin Orbit recently decided to exit, and Vector Launch went bankrupt last year. But, as we said above, this did not help DARPA's "miracle weapon". The launch was postponed from February to March 1, then to the second. Then it was shifted for a long time and, finally, it was announced that it would not be at all. In any case, within the time frame announced by DARPA.
Thus, the Pentagon did not get what it wanted so badly: a cheap and reliable means to launch vehicles into space. The company itself explained the actual refusal of the competition by the fact that they did not want to risk it.
"We saw some information that worried us, so we decided that it would be better to cancel the launch and try again on another day, because if the data were correct, it could certainly lead to problems during the flight.", - said Chris Kemp.
The company announced its desire to repeat the test, but did not provide any data on the new start date. “It probably won't be a day or two. It's more like a week or two,”Kemp said, commenting on the timing of the next launch. "This is definitely not a month or two."
But the situation can be more complicated than the specialist thinks. There are difficulties on this path, and they are connected not only with the fact that the company can no longer count on funding from the US Department of Defense. For the next launch attempt, it will be necessary to amend the license of the Federal Aviation Administration, since this launch will no longer be associated with a competition, and the payload for the launch in the person of DARPA CubeSat satellites will be replaced with a payload. And, of course, you need to eliminate the problems that made themselves felt during the first tests.
Three times - system
This incident is just one part of the Pentagon's failures to create cheap media. Recall that the United States in 2014-2015 worked on the ALASA project, within the framework of which they wanted to launch spacecraft using the air launch method. The main platform was chosen by the F-15 Eagle fighter, which launched a rocket that would launch satellites weighing up to 45 kilograms into orbit. In 2015, the program was closed: by that time it could "boast" of two failed tests.
And in January 2020, the Pentagon lost another hope for "accessible space." Then Boeing suddenly abandoned its participation in the Experimental Spaceplane (XSP) program and closed the development of the Phantom Express. “Following this detailed review, Boeing will immediately end its Experimental Spaceplane (XSP) program,” said Jerry Drelling, Boeing spokesman. "We will now redirect our investments from XSP to other Boeing programs that span the maritime, air and space sectors." DARPA confirmed that the company notified the agency of its decision to withdraw from the complex development program.
The Phantom Express was meant to be the epitome of economy. The device was a spaceplane with a consumable second stage, which was supposed to launch satellites. The reusable carrier itself, after the start, had to go back and land like a regular plane. The Phantom Express was supposed to take off vertically, like a conventional rocket.
Presumably, the failure of the Launch Challenge competition is less painful for the US Department of Defense. However, it demonstrates well that not everything that seems relatively simple and economical will work in practice.
